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Statement attributable to the Spokesman for the Secretary-General on Yemen

9 Oct2016

Statement attributable to the Spokesman for the Secretary-General on Yemen

The Secretary-General condemns the attack on an event hall in Sana’a where hundreds of people were gathered for a funeral ceremony. Initial reports indicate that the attack, said to have been airstrikes by the Coalition, killed over 140 people and injured hundreds of others. The Secretary-General expresses his sincere condolences and sympathies to the families of the victims and wishes a speedy recovery to those injured.

The Secretary-General notes that any deliberate attack against civilians is utterly unacceptable and calls for a prompt and impartial investigation of this incident. Those responsible for the attack must be brought to justice.

The Secretary-General once again reminds all parties to abide by their obligations under international humanitarian law – including the fundamental rules of proportionality, distinction, and precaution – to protect civilians and civilian infrastructure against attack.

OSESGY Highlights

Martin Griffiths: Track II efforts complement official negotiations, and lay the foundation for peace-building in Yemen

The Special Envoy of the Secretary General for Yemen, Martin Griffiths, stressed the importance of ongoing Track II efforts, as complementary to official negotiations in Yemen, indicating that it is crucial to work on peace-building in Yemen, in parallel to official diplomatic efforts, known as Track I, to end the war. He added that “the real work in Yemen starts the day after we reach a political deal. We should all work to prepare for that day.

Martin Griffiths to CNN: There is an urgent need to de-escalate the conflict in Yemen

The Special Envoy of the Secretary General for Yemen, Martin Griffiths stressed the importance of turning the calls for de-escalation in Yemen into action. Speaking to Becky Anderson, on CNN's Connect the World on Thursday, Griffiths mentioned that there is "a very strong desire to move from war to peace in Yemen", adding that the challenge now is to turn the calls for de-escalation into action. "What we now urgently need to do is to see what are the first steps that we can make on de-escalating this conflict to give some space for the political process." Griffiths clarified that while a ceasefire is not a pre-condition for resuming political consultations, "the urgent need now is to do something on the issue of downing the temperature of the war while we move towards talks." The Special Envoy confirmed that he is working on re-launching the political talks this month, adding that no firm date and venue have been decided yet.